Automatic valve.



F. E WOODRUFF & W. K. BISHOP.

AUTOMATIC VALVE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 8,1914.

l l%U 4%9 Patented May 25, 1915.

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TATE PATENT Flli lltlo FRANK E. WOODRUFF AND WILLIAM K. BISHOP, OE IBINGHAMTON, NEW YORK.

AUTOMATIC VALVE.

me ias.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 25, 1915.

Application filed. July 8, 1914. Serial No. 849,780.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, FRANK E. -W001)- RUFF and WILLIAM K. BISHOP, citizens of the United States, residing at Binghamton, in the county of Broome and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Valves, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the general subject of automatic valves, and has special reference to a novel construction thereof which will become automatically operative in case of fire, and which may also be operated in an emergency by the manual closing of an electric circuit without disturbing the means provided for the closing of the valve by fire or heat.

In many instances it is necessary to provide pipe lines which carry gas or combustible liquids with valves which will automatically close when surrounded by flames to prevent serious explosions. It is especially desirable that a valve of this character be provided with means which will become automatically operative to close the pipe line without manual attention, and which can be relied upon to become immediately operative when the fiames surround the same. However, it is also desirable that valves of this general type be provided with means whereby they can be shut by the manual closing of an electric circuit at a distant point. For instance, an automatic valve may be located at a point where a fire does not happen to be raging, but because it remains open, the heat may cause a part of the pipe line in which the valve is located to break at a point distant from the valve, and serious damage may result without the valve having a chance to exercise its proper function. In other words, the valves which can only be closed by the fusing of a metal often refuse to work because the heat is not intense enough around the valve to melt the metal, and the very purpose for which the valve is installed fails. However, by combining with a valve that becomes operative upon the fusing of a metal, the novel construction which also makes it possible to operate the valve from a distant point, the reliability and safety of a valve of this character is greatly increased.

Accordingly, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide a novel valve operating mechanism which can be automatically actuated by the closing of an electric circuit, or which can become operative itself when surrounded by flames or subjected to intense heat.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel and practical construction that is substantial and reliable, and which em- (bodies as few parts as possible to effect a quick and positive closing of the valve, which will remain shut until manually reset.

lVith the above and other objects in view which will more readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated and claimed.

A preferred and practical embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of the automatic valve operating mechanism forming the subject of the present invention. Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the construction shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view showing the construction of the valve casing and gate valve.

Similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in the several figures of the drawings, the reference characters 1 and 2 designate opposite pipe sections which have arranged therebetween a valve casing G which comprises separable casing sections 3 and 4 carrying therewith oppositely disposed nipple connections 5 and 6 respectively. With further reference to the particular construction of the valve casing C, it will be observed in connection with the enlarged detail view Fig. 3, that the same includes an intermediate spacing plate 7 which has its central portion cut away as at 8 to provide a working clearance for a sliding gate valve 9. Thus, it will be obvious that when the separable casing sections 3 and 4 are clamped to gether by means of the fastening elements 10 with the spacing plate 7 therebetween, a chamber is formed in which the gate valve 9 has a free sliding movement so that it may be lifted above the point where the nipvably receives the valve rod 12 which carries the gate valve 9 at its lower end, and whose upper end is formed into a hook or offset portion as indicated at 13. Secured'to one side of the valve casing, preferably on the casing section 3, is a supporting standard 14 having at its upper end an angularly disposed portion 15 similar to the hook 13 of the valve rod. On the opposite side of the valve casing, on the section 4, there is secured a supporting arm 16 which pivotally connects at its top end with a valve closing arm 17 as indicated at 18. This valve closing arm 17 is pivotally connected at 19 with portion 13 of the valve rod 12 is'unsupported, the weight. 20 will push the valve rod 12 into the casing, and consequently push the gate valve intosuch' a position that it will completely obstruct and out off communication between the pipe sections 1 and 2.. I

In order to maintain the gate valve in its normal open position, it is necessary that it be supported in the upper portion of the chamber formed between the casing sections 3 and 4, and to accomplish this result a keeper arm 21 is provided. This keeper arm 21 is formed at one end witha abifurcated keeper portion 22, and at its opposite end with a latch projection '23, and for the purpose of -maintaining the keeper portion 22 in its normal relation to the hook 13 of.

the valve rod 12, the said arm is pivoted as at 24 'to a slidin vsleeve 25 arranged on the standard 14. t one side of the pivot 24 the keeper arm 21 is also provided with a headed stud 26 which projects laterally from theside of the arm, and is adapted to loosely receive one end of a fusible link 27, the upper end of which is loosely hung on the angular portion 15 of the supporting stand ard 14. With only this construction, it is obvious that the keeper arm 21 could not support or maintain the valve rod 12 in its raised position, because the arm would tend to turn on the pivot 24, so there is provided a magnet-controlled release lever 28 having at its lower end an armature portion 29, while its upper end is formed with a holding slot 30 for receiving a latch projection 23'. This magnet controlled release lever'28 is pivotally supported in the bifurcated end 31 of a lever arm 32 which is a part of the magnet supporting bracket 33 that is held in] position by being clamped at its lower end between the nipple 5 of the valve casing, and a clamping ring 34 carried by the pipe section 1. To provide for the rocking of the release lever 28 on its pivots in' the end of the arm32, a suitable pairof magnets 35 is carried by the magnet supporting bracket,which has electrical connections 36 with a battery 37, which connections include an electric switch, prefer" ably of the push button type, diagrammati-Q valve closing arm, unless some positive means is provided to suspend the gatevalve in its normal position in the upper part of the chamber through the medium of the valve rod 12, as shown in Figs. 1 and ,3 of the drawings. By reference to the former figure it will beapparent that the suspension of the gate valve to permit continuous com munication between the pipe sections 1 and v2 is effected by means of the hook 513 of the valve rod 12 being held in the bifurcatedend 22' of the keeper .arm 21, which latter is suspended from the angular portion 15 of. the supporting standard 14 by means of the fusible link 27, Further, the open position of the valve depends upon the latch projection 23 being in the holdings-lot 3 0 of the magnet controlled release lever28. In other words, to maintain the gate valve 9 in its normalposition, there must be two points of support,vtha;t is, the keeper arm 21 must be suspended from. the standard 14 by the link 27, and at the same time have its latch projection in engagement with the release lever 28. This two-point support or en.- gagement of the keeper arm with elements which are capable of -being' rendered operable, makes a very eifecti-ve and accurately poised construction which can be quickly actuated in case of an emergency to release the gate valve from its normal position so that it will be forcedshut by means of the weighted valve closing arm and held in its closed position until manually reset.

With the apparatus in the position shown in 'Fig. 1 and assuming thattheentire mechanism is enveloped by flames, or in the presence of intense heat, the fusible link 27 will melt and remove-all sup t of the arm 21 by the standard 14 so that the slidingusleeve- 25 which carries one end of the keeper arm 21 will be pulled downwardly by the valve rod 12 because of its connection with the weighted valve arm 17. This action willnot necessarily disengage the hook 1 3 of the valve rod 12 from the bifurcated end 22 of the arm21, but since there is no support for the arm 21 after the melting of the link 27,

the whole end of the arm which is connected with the sliding sleeve will merely drop without any interference from the magnet controlled release lever 28 at the opposite end of the apparatus.

Should it be desirable to close the valve without the melting of the link 27, so that nothing can pass from one pipe section to the other, and in event that it is impossible for the fusible element to act, it is only necessary to close the switch 38 at whatever point it may be located so that the magnets 35 are energized to attract the armature portion 29 of the release lever 28. Obviously when this lever is held to the magnets, its upper end is drawn away from the latch projection on the end of the keeper arm, so that the said latch 23 will become free of the holding slot 30. Immediately, the arm and lever are disconnected at this point, the lever 21 will swing on the pivot 24, and release the hook 13 of the valve rod 12 from the bifurcated portion 22 of the keeper arm. Owing to the fact that the link 27 is loosely connected with the stud 26, the same will offer no resistance to this action of the apparatus. Accordingly, it will be apparent that the weighted valve closing arm 17 can be brought into play by the latch projections 23 being disconnected from holding engagement with the upper end of the release lever 28, to close the valve in the same manner as it is closed when the link 27 becomes fused.

Without further description it is thought that the various features and advantages of the present invention will be readily understood by those skilled in the art, and that minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or scope of the appended claims or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

We claim:

1. In an automatic valve actuating mecha nism the combination with a valve casing, of a weighted valve slidable in said casing, a support carried by said casing, keeper means slidably arranged on said support and adapted to maintain the valve proper in its open position, fusible means for suspending said keeper means from said support, and a magnet controlled device releasably engaging the said keeper means.

2. In an automatic valve actuating mechanism the combination with a valve casing, of a valve element slidable therein, a support carried by the casing, keeper means pivotally and slidably mounted on said support for maintaining the valve element in its normal open position, a fusible connection between said support and said keeper means for suspending the latter, and a magnet controlled device for releasably engaging the said keeper means.

3. In an automatic valve actuating mechanism, the combination with a weighted valve element of a valve casing, a standard carried by the valve casing, a sliding sleeve mounted on said standard, a keeper arm pivotally connected to said sliding sleeve and de tachably receiving a portion of the valve element at one end, a fusible link loosely connected at its terminal ends to said standard and keeper arm so as to normally hold the valve in open position, and magnet controlled means for releasably engaging the said keeper means.

4. In an automatic valve actuating mechanism the combination with a weighted valve element of a valve casing, a standard carried by the valve casing having an angularly disposed end portion, a sliding sleeve mounted on said standard, a keeper arm pivotally connected to said sliding sleeve and having a bifurcated keeper end for detachably receiving a part of the weighted valve element, a stud carried by said arm, a fusible link loosely connecting said stud with the angular end of the standard so as to normally hold the valve in its open position, and magnet controlled means for releasably engaging the said keeper arm.

5. In an automatic valve actuating mechanism the combination withaweighted valve element of a valve casing, a standard carried by the valve casing having an angularly disposed end portion, a sliding sleeve mounted on said standard, a keeper arm pivotally connected to said sliding sleeve and having a bifurcated keeper end for detachably receiving a part of the weighted valve element, a latch projection on the keeper arm, a stud carried by said arm, a fusible link loosely connecting said stud with the angular end of the standard so as to normally hold the valve in open position, a magnet supported at one side of the valve casing, a lever supporting arm, a release lever pivoted in said arm and having an armature portion at one end and a holding slot at the other for receiving the latch projection of the keeper arm, and means for energizing the magnet to actuate the release arm for causing the same to disengage from the keeper arm.

6. In an automatic valveactuating mechanism the combination with a weighted valve element of a valve casing, a standard carried by the valve casing, a keeper arm slidably connected with the standard and having at one end a bifurcated keeper portion for detachably receiving a part of the valve element, a latch projection at the other end of said keeper arm, a fusible link connecting the arm and standard to maintain the valve in its open position, and magnet controlled means releasably engaging the said latch projection.

7. In an automatic valve actuating mechanism the combination with a weighted valve element of a valve casing, a standard carried by the valve casing, a' keeper arm slida-bly connected with the standard and having at one enda bifurcated keeper portion for detachably receiving, apart of the valve element, and having at its other end a latch projection, a v fusible link pivot-ally connecting the arm and standard tonormally maintain the valve in its open position, a magnet supported at one side of the casing, a lever supporting arm, a release lever pivoted in said arm, and having one end detachably engaging with the latch projection ofthe keeper arm, and means for energizing the magnet to actuate the release arm for causing the said latch projection to disengage from the keeper arm.

8. An automatic valve actuating meche anism including a valve casing comprising ble link for suspending the keeper arm" from said'suppo'rt, and magnet controlled means for releasably' engaging the said keeper means In testimony W hereof We hereunto aifix our signatures in the presence of two W-it nesses-i FRANK E. WOODRUFF. WILLIAM Iiv BISHOP Witnesses: r

J on MARGY, J r.,, M. R. HART.

Copies of this patent may be obtainedior five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,-

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